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Governance

The Museum is managed by the Museum Director and the Executive Board.

Museum Director Sir Michael Dixon reports to the Board of Trustees. Eight of the 12 Trustees are appointed by the Prime Minister and one (Royal Society Trustee) by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). The remaining three are appointed by the board itself.

Originally the natural history departments of the British Museum, the Natural History Museum became a separate entity through the British Museum Act 1963. We were known as the British Museum (Natural History) until we officially became the Natural History Museum through the Museums and Galleries Act 1992.

The Board of Trustees meets four times a year and is responsible for overseeing the management of the Museum and the appointment of the Museum Director, currently Sir Michael Dixon.

The board is composed of 12 members: eight Trustees are selected by the Prime Minister, one (Royal Society Trustee) is nominated by the DCMS and three are chosen by the board itself. Trustees are appointed for four years, and may serve a second consecutive four-year term before standing down.

The Executive Board is responsible for running the Museum under the leadership of the Museum Director, who is appointed by the Board of Trustees.

The Executive Board approves the Museum's policies, procedures, programmes and projects. It formulates and monitors the Museum's corporate plan, delegates decision-making responsibilities to other management groups where appropriate, and has collective responsibility for the entire Museum.

It provides the board with assurance that adequate corporate governance, risk management and internal control processes are in place and working effectively. It also reviews the board's code of practice, register of interests and code of conduct for staff.

The majority of the Museum’s funding comes from government grant-in-aid through the DCMS. This funding is set for a number of years, and the Museum provides reports to the DCMS on how it has met its agreed targets.

Additional funding for our scientific research is awarded by Research Councils UK, the European Union, trusts, charities and other grant-awarding bodies.

Our long-term aim is to reduce the Museum’s dependence on grant-in-aid. We are achieving this by maximising revenue from our trading operations and finding new sources of financial support for our scientific research and exhibitions.

The Trading Company carries out the Museum’s commercial activities, which include touring exhibitions, brand management and licensing, imaging, catering, retail, events, consultancy and more.

The Trading Company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Museum. No loans are given to or taken from the Museum, but there is an intercompany current account - where transactions between the two organisations are booked - that is regularly settled.

The Trading Company's Board is composed of three Trustees - the Museum Director, the Director of Public Engagement and the Director of Finance.

Write to us:
FOI Coordinator
Library and Information Services
The Natural History Museum
Cromwell Road
London SW7 5BDEmail us

Copyright

Information created by the Museum and made available online or in hard copy can only be reproduced for non-commercial research, private study and use in the UK media. Any other use requires permission and fees may be charged.